Cummins Report (Vic.)

The report of the Protecting Victoria's Vulnerable Children Inquiry by the Victorian Government - known as the Cummins Report after its Chair Philip Cummins - provided a comprehensive overview of the contemporary Child Protection and out-of-home care sectors. It made a range of recommendations that led to the development of new services.

 


Inside: Life in Children's Homes and Institutions

An exhibition by the National Museum of Australia in Canberra, about the experiences of children who spent time institutionalised in the twentieth century. The exhibition toured cities in Australia before forming a small permanent exhibition space at the National Museum, and an online collection.


Open Place (Vic)

Open Place is a support and advocacy service for survivors of institutional placements in Victoria. It was established and funded by the Victorian Government as one of its commitments after its formal apology to Victorian Forgotten Australians in 2006. Initially funding was provided to the community sector organisation Berry Street to manage Open Place. In July 2020 Relationships Australia Victoria became the provider of Open Place.


National Apology to Forgotten Australians and Child Migrants

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd issued a national apology to Forgotten Australians and Child Migrants in the Great Hall of Parliament House in Canberra. "We come together today to deal with an ugly chapter in our nation’s history … To say to you, the Forgotten Australians, and those who were sent to our shores as children without your consent, that we are sorry." Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, 2009.


Australian Orphanage Museum

Care Leavers Australasia Network (CLAN) manages and operates the Australian Orphanage Museum in Geelong, Victoria. It opened on 1 April 2023.


Acknowledgement Seats, NT

There are two "Acknowledgement Seats" in the Northern Territory, one on the Nightcliff Foreshore in Darwin, and one in Alice Springs. They are a joint initiative of Relationships Australia Northern Territory, the local governments of Darwin and Alice Springs, the Alliance for Forgotten Australians, and the Find and Connect Program (Commonwealth Government).


Tasmanian Memorial, Rosny Park

An additional memorial at the Rosny Park Park Golf Course, in suburban Hobart, funded and supported by the Find and Connect Program, the Rosny Park Golf YMCA, and the Alliance for Forgotten Australians, "In memory of all that suffered while in care in Tasmanian institutions and out of home care."


Tasmanian Memorial, Hobart

Located in the Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens in Hobart, funded by the Australian Government and the Tasmanian Government: "In remembrance of those children who languished in institutional care. To those who succumbed to harsh punishments meted out by a severe system, we remember you. To those who overcame such experiences, we acknowledge your courage and your determination to have your story told".


WA Memorial

Located on James Street, Perth, in the grassed area in front of the WA Museum. The memorial "is jointly funded by the Western Australian and Commonwealth Governments and is dedicated to all Western Australians who experienced institutional or out-of-home care as children."


Victorian Memorial

Located on Southbank Promenade, next to the Yarra River to "remember those thousands of children who were separated from their families and grew up or spent time in Victorian orphanages, children’s homes and foster homes last century."